The following U.S. Patents and U.S. Patent Application are incorporated herein by reference in entirety.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,648,185 discloses an electrically operated pre-mix valve including a cup lever operable to activate a switch to energize a solenoid. The solenoid operates a first lever, which then contacts and operates a second lever. The second lever, in turn, moves against the contact end of an actuating shaft. The actuating shaft is thereby moved to permit beverage flow through the valve and out of a nozzle thereof. The valve uses a compound lever system to gain a mechanical advantage for substantially lessening the opening force required to be applied by the solenoid.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,770,446 discloses a system and method for dispensing a predetermined portion of a beverage or drink additive using a cost effective portion control valve that replaces electrical components with mechanical components.
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/253,614 discloses a valve dispensing system that can be used in a beverage dispenser. In particular, the valve dispensing system has individual valve module components that control the flow of a beverage or beverage component, and a plurality of valve module components may be combined to form a system capable of dispensing a plurality of beverages and/or beverage components.